Carrier for a plurality of rectangular containers

ABSTRACT

A carrier for a stack of identical, relatively long and shallow rectangular containers. A housing in the form of a relatively narrow, formed sheet metal strap embraces the bottom, back and top of the stack, and a sheet metal tongue connects the free ends of the strap. A toggle latch is pivoted on the top of the strap and pivotally receives the top of the tongue, and movement of the latch from a latched position to a release position permits the lower end portion of the tongue to be disengaged from the lower free end of the strap. There is a pivoted carrying handle on the strap.

United States Patent 1191 1111 3,806,011 Meek et al. Apr. 23, 1974 [54] CARRIER FOR A PLURALITY 0F 1,244,344 10 1917 Leaman 294 104 RECTANGULAR CONTAINERS Inventors: Elmo L. Meek; Richard E. Kinder,

both of Wichita, Kans.

Miro-Flex Company, Inc., Wichita, Kans.

Filed: Dec. 4, 1972 Appl. No.: 311,849

Assignee:

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Primary Examiner-Robert J. Spar Assistant Examiner-Kenneth Noland Attorney, Agent, or Firm--Hofgren, Wegner, Allen, Stellman & McCord 57 ABSTRACT A carrier for a stack of identical, relatively long and shallow rectangular containers. A housing in the form of a relativelysnarrow, formed sheet metal strap embraces the bottom, back and top of the stack, and a sheet metal tongue connects the free ends of the strap. A toggle latch is pivoted on the top of the strap and pivotally receives the top of the tongue, and movement of the'latch from a latched position to a release position permits the lower end portion of the tongue to be-disengaged from the lower free end of the strap. There is a pivoted carrying handle on the strap.

8 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures CARRIER FOR A PLURALITY OF RECTANGULAR CONTAINERS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Applicants assignee manufactures reflector flares for highway use of the type meeting federal Department of Transportation standard 125 which will become effective in the near future. That standard, in addition to establishing specifications for such reflector flares, requires that after its effective date there be three such flares carried in every bus and truck.

Applicants co-pending application Ser. No. 253,824, filed May 16, 1972, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,742,897, discloses such a reflector flare which folds into a long, shallow rectangular box that also forms the base for the flare when it is erected. There is a need for a convenient means to carry three such boxes, containing the flares, in trucks and'buses.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a carrier for three identical containers such as three highway reflector flare boxes of the type disclosed in our previously identified co-pending US. patent application. A sheet metal housing which surrounds three sides of a stack of such boxes has its free ends connected by a tongue, and a toggle latch which cooperates with the housing and the tongue causes them to snugly embrace the stack when the toggle latch is in a latched position, while pivotal movement of the toggle latch to a release position permits the opposite end of the tongue to be disengaged from the adjacent free end of the housing for quick and easy removal of the boxes from the carrier.

A pivoted handle on the carrier also provides the pivotal connection between the toggle latch and the hous- I-Ioles in the toggle latch and in the housing are aligned in latched position to receive the hasp of a padlock, and when a padlock is in position on the housing and latch it will retain them together even though the handle may be removed.

The principal object of the present invention, therefore, is to provide a convenient, inexpensivecarrie'r for three boxes containing reflector flares for highway use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a carrier which firmly embraces three boxes, but which may be quickly released and opened to permit removal of the boxes.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a carrier which may be locked to prevent unauthorized removal of the flares, and which, when so locked, may have its carrying handle removed to make it more difficult for an unauthorized person to take the carrier and the flares in it.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a carrier structure which is readily adapted to carrying any stack of identical, relatively long and shallow rectangular containers.

THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the carrier of the present invention with three boxes of flares fastened in it, the stack of boxes being laid on their backs for easy opening of the carrier;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the carrier with the boxes removed, viewing the carrier from the top as seen in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the carrier taken substantially as indicated along the line 33 of FIG. 1, with the boxes indicated by broken lines;

FIG. 4 is a view like FIG. 3 with the tongue and toggle latch in release position in solid lines, with the toggle latch in latched position in broken lines, and with the tongue in broken lines in its open position; and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially as indicated along the line 5-5 of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to the drawings in greater detail, three containers, each indicated by the reference letter C, are of the type disclosed in our co-pending US. Patent application heretofore referred to, and are superimposed to form a stack S. The carrier of the present invention, indicated generally at 9, holds the three containers C in a convenient arrangement for carrying. The carrier 9 is fabricated of sheet steel, and includes a housing, indicated generally at 10, a toggle latch, indicated generally at 20, a tongue, indicated generally at 30, and a carrying handle, indicated generally at 40.

The housing 10 is formed from a single piece of sheet steel and has a bottom strap 11 which lies beneath the stack S, a back strap 12 at right angles to the bottom strap and extending up the long sides of the containers C in the stack, and a top strap 13 which overlies the stack and is parallel to the bottom strap 11. The width of the housing is substantially less than the length of the containers C in the stack, and in fact isonly a small fraction of that length.

The bottom strap has a free end 14 which is at the front of the stack and has a downturned tip 15 forming a tongue keeper; and the housing top strap 13 has a free end 16 which is substantially at the front of the stack S but overhangs it somewhat. The front end portion of the top strap 13 is provided with a pair of parallel upstanding ears 17 and 18, and there are aligned pivot holes 17a and 18a in the ears.

The straps ll, 12 and 13 of the housing 10 are provided with integrally formed strengthening ribs 11a,

12a, and 13a; and the central areas of the straps are cut out as seen at 19 in the bottom strap, at 19a in the back strap, and at 19b in the top strap, to reduce the weight of the carrier.

The toggle latch 20 is generally U-shaped, and has a pair of parallel upright webs 21 and 22 connected by a cross .web 23. The upright webs 21 and 22 lie between the housing ears 17 and 18, and are provided with pivot holes 24 and 25, respectively, which are aligned with the pivot holes 17a and 18a in the ears 17 and 18. Thus, when pivot pin means (to be described) is inserted through the aligned holes 17a, 18a, 24 and 25, the toggle latch 20 may be pivoted between a latched position, illustrated in'the drawings, in which it overlies the housing top strap 13, and a release position in which it extends forwardly from the housing and thus is forward of the stack.

The tongue 30 consists of a strip of sheet steel having a central body portion 31, and at the top of the body portion 31 is a widened area 32 at the lateral margins of which are forwardly turned parallel plates 33 and 34 which lie immediately inside the parallel webs 21 and 22 of the toggle latch. A pivot pin 35 impales aligned holes in the webs 21 and 22 and the tongue plates 33 and 34 so as to pivotally mount'the tongue 30 upon the latch 20.

The bottom end of the tongue 30 has a rearwardly bent portion 36 which underlies the bottom strap 11 of the housing 10, and a central slot 37 cut in the lower end of the tongue 30 receives the downturned tongue keeper 15 of the bottom strap 11.

The handle 40 is fabricated from relatively heavy gauge steel wire, and consists of a cross bar 41, side arms 42 and 43 which converge slightly from their points of junction with the cross bar 41, and coaxial, transverse pin members 44 and 45 which are parallel to the cross bar 41 and extend, respectively, through the aligned holes 17d and 24 and through the aligned holes 18a and 25 so as to provide the pivot means for the toggle latch 20.

The relative positions of the pivot means 44-45 for the toggle latch 20, and the pivot 35 which connects the tongue 30 with the latch 30, are such that in the latched position of the latch 20 the tongue pivot pin 35 is above the latch pivot means 44-45, while in release position of the latch 20 the tongue pivot 35 is forward of and below the latch pivot means 44-45. In the latter position, the rearwardly turned lower end portion 36 of the tongue 30 angles downwardly toward the front, and the slot 37 in the tongue is freed from the downturned tip 15-of the housing bottom strap 11 so that the lower end of the tongue 30 may be disengaged from the housing bottom strap and the tongue may be swung upwardly and rearwardly to a position in which both it and the latch 20 are overlying the housing top strap 13 and the flare containers C may be removed from the housing 10.

The housing ear 17 is provided with a lock opening 50, and the latch web 21 is provided with a lock opening 51 which is aligned with the lock opening-50 in the latched position of the latch. This permits the hasp H of a padlock (not shown) to impale the aligned lock openings 50 and 51 in order to lock the tongue in its closed position. When a padlock hasp H is in the aligned holes 50 and 51, the coaxial handle ends 44 and 45 may be withdrawn from the aligned pivot holes in the housing ears 17 and 18 and in the latch webs 21 and 22 so as to remove the handle from the assembly, and the latch is still retained in its latched position by the padlock hasp.

The foregoing detailed description is given for clearness of understanding only to no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, as modifications will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

We claim: Y

1. A carrier for a stack of identical, relatively long and shallow rectangular containers, said carrier comprising, in combination:

a unitary housing of'rigid material which includes an effectively planar rigid bottom strap beneath the stack, an effectively planar rigid back strap extending up one of the long sides of the containers in the stack, and an effectively planar rigid top strap overlying the stack, the width of said housing being substantially less than the length of the containers, and said bottom and top straps beingparallel to one another and having free ends at the front of the stack;

a one-piece rigid tongue which has a first end portion pivotally related to the free end of the top strap and a second end portion releasably engageable with the free end of the bottom strap;.

connector means mounted on the housing top strap adjacent the free end thereof, said connector means having a pivotal connection with the first end portion of the tongue and being movable between a latched position overlying the top strap and a release position, the tongue in said latched position of the connector means being engaged with the bottom strap and pulling said bottom and top straps into snug engagement with the stack and further serving to engage and retain the containers in said housing, and the second end portion of the tongue being released from the bottom strap for disengagement from the housing by movement of the connector means to release position;

and a handle pivotally mounted on the housing.

2. The combination of claim 1 in which the connector means comprises a toggle latch, pivot means mounts said toggle latch on the free end portion of the housing top strap for movement between a latched position overlying said top strap and a release position forward of the stack, and in which the tongue is pivotally mounted on the toggle latch on a pivot which is above the latch pivot means in latched position and forward of said latch pivot means in release position.

3. The combination of claim 2 in which the free end portion of the housing top strap has a pair of parallel, upright ears provided with aligned pivot holes, the latch is generally U-shaped with parallel, upright webs having pivot holes aligned with those in the ears, and the latch pivot means extends through the aligned holes in said ears and said webs.

4. The combination of claim 3 in which the handle spans the ears and the latch webs and has coaxial, transverse pin members which extend through the aligned pivot holes in said ears and said webs to provide the latch pivot means.

5. The combination of claim 4 in which a latch web and an ear are provided with lock openings which are aligned in latched position of the latch to'receive the hasp of a padlock, and in which the handle pin members may be withdrawn from the pivot holes to remove the handle, the latch being retainable in latched position by a padlock hasp in the absence of the handle.

6. The combination of claim 1 in which the free end of the housing bottom strap has a downturned tip forming a tongue keeper, andin which the second end portion of the tongue extends beneath the bottom strap and is slotted to receive said keeper.

7. The combination of claim 1 in which the handle is mounted on the housing top strap.

8. The combination of claim 1 in'which the housing is of sheet metal. 

1. A carrier for a stack of identical, relatively long and shallow rectangular containers, said carrier comprising, in combination: a unitary housing of rigid material which includes an effectively planar rigid bottom strap beneath the stack, an effectively planar rigid back strap extending up one of the long sides of the containers in the stack, and an effectively planar rigid top strap overlying the stack, the width of said housing being substantially less than the length of the containers, and said bottom and top straps being parallel to one another and having free ends at the front of the stack; a one-piece rigid tongue which has a first end portion pivotally related to the free end of the top strap and a second end portion releasably engageable with the free end of the bottom strap; connector means mounted on the housing top strap adjacent the free end thereof, said connector means having a pivotal connection with the first end portion of the tongue and being movable between a latched position overlying the top strap and a release position, the tongue in said latched position of the connector means being engaged with the bottom strap and pulling said bottom and top straps into snug engagement with the stack and further serving to engage and retain the containers in said housing, and the second end portion of the tongue being released from the bottom strap for disengagement from the housing by movement of the connector means to release position; and a handle pivotally mounted on the housing.
 2. The combination of claim 1 in which the connector means comprises a toggle latch, pivot means mounts said toggle latch on the free end portion of the housing top strap for movement between a latched position overlying said top strap and a release positiOn forward of the stack, and in which the tongue is pivotally mounted on the toggle latch on a pivot which is above the latch pivot means in latched position and forward of said latch pivot means in release position.
 3. The combination of claim 2 in which the free end portion of the housing top strap has a pair of parallel, upright ears provided with aligned pivot holes, the latch is generally U-shaped with parallel, upright webs having pivot holes aligned with those in the ears, and the latch pivot means extends through the aligned holes in said ears and said webs.
 4. The combination of claim 3 in which the handle spans the ears and the latch webs and has coaxial, transverse pin members which extend through the aligned pivot holes in said ears and said webs to provide the latch pivot means.
 5. The combination of claim 4 in which a latch web and an ear are provided with lock openings which are aligned in latched position of the latch to receive the hasp of a padlock, and in which the handle pin members may be withdrawn from the pivot holes to remove the handle, the latch being retainable in latched position by a padlock hasp in the absence of the handle.
 6. The combination of claim 1 in which the free end of the housing bottom strap has a downturned tip forming a tongue keeper, and in which the second end portion of the tongue extends beneath the bottom strap and is slotted to receive said keeper.
 7. The combination of claim 1 in which the handle is mounted on the housing top strap.
 8. The combination of claim 1 in which the housing is of sheet metal. 